Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

Just not enough money on the ole Salary Cap tree to solve that. We made our bed offensively and have to sleep in it. However, let's take a look at our defensive side and see what last year showed and what the future may hold.

Anthony Hargrove-Motor all the time. Came on late last year. You could see that he hadn't played much in the last few years but came on late. Agressively rushed the passer. Has a future.

Bryce Fisher-Wow, what a late surge. Led the team in sacks. The surge probably priced him out of our range.

Damione Lewis-Is this guy ever going to live up to the hype? Was benched late in the year and I was wondering why it didn't happen sooner. Just never produced.

Erik Flowers-Was a first round pick once. Pretty much what DLew will be soon. A journeyman player who better have special team skills.

Tyoka Jackson-"Put me in coach, I'm ready to play." Will play whenever, where ever, and however. Age slowing him down a little. May have one more good year left.

Jimmy Kennedy-Foot problems have set this guy back, but seems to be a player. Really like the tandem of Kennedy/Pickett on the front line. Should be a starter in 2005.

Leonard Little-How NO holding calls from an offensive lineman against Little all year could have happened is beyond me. If he can stay out of the pokey, I like the Hargrove/Little tandem on the ends.

Ryan Pickett-Strangely, the Rams team site has him listed as a NT. 3-4 innuendo? Anyway, of the three first round picks that year, this is the one that's going to pay off. Watch this guy against the run next year. He caught onto Marmie's system.

Re: Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

Great points all, Tx.

Originally Posted by Tx

Ryan Pickett-Strangely, the Rams team site has him listed as a NT. 3-4 innuendo?

This is a Lovie holdover. In TB, Lovie had Booger McFarland to close holes and Sapp to rush from the inside. It worked great, and he thought with Pickett and D-Lew he had the same thing. He was half right - Pickett is great for plugging holes, but D-Lew has only had a few glimpses of showing that he has inside rush capability.

Bryce Fisher-Wow, what a late surge. Led the team in sacks. The surge probably priced him out of our range.

You're right, but it's a shame. He appears to be a quality individual and a real stand-up kind of guy. He's just now coming into his own, and I hope he can stick around.

Damione Lewis-Is this guy ever going to live up to the hype?

I still see Marmie moving him to DE. Lovie saw Sapp in him. I think Marmie is thinking more Richard Seymour or Cory Redding.

Jimmy Kennedy-Foot problems have set this guy back, but seems to be a player. Really like the tandem of Kennedy/Pickett on the front line. Should be a starter in 2005.

If we can improve our LBs, we will see the value of the Kennedy/Pickett interior. These two will swallow up blockers and if we can just find a LB that can hit a hole, we will see a much improved front 7.

"Before the gates of excellence the high gods have placed sweat; long is the road thereto and rough and steep at first; but when the heights are reached, then there is ease, though grievously hard in the winning." --- Hesiod

Re: Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

1. Bryce Fisher will sign a deal elsewhere (for fairly decend $); and
2. Leonard Little will be available to start next season.

Assuming that correct, here's how I see the D-line shaping up:

Defensive End
I think Little and Hargrove can be an effective starting duo. Hargrove will improve significantly in his second year after getting valuable playing time as a rookie. Depth is a concern. Eric Flowers has not demonstrated much, and swing-men T.Jackson and D.Lewis are really converted DTs. DE is a deep position in the draft, and I expect the Rams will select one on the first day.

Defensive Tackle
I am optimistic about the tandem of Kennedy and Pickett, but again depth is a concern. What the Rams need is another big body who can give the starters a breather. Might see the return of Jeff Zgonina here, or perhaps a FA.

Overall, I think the Rams D-line is in decent shape. I would spend both FA $ and high draft choices on LBs before I'd look to bolster the D-line.

Of course, all of this will change if Little is convicted. The question is, how concerned are the Rams that this will occur, and what steps will they take to plan for the contingency?

Re: Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

I have to respond to some of these statements on our defense which by the way we will all agree is the only thing holding us back from being a contender again. First of all we will have more cap room when Faulk re-works his deal. We will be able to make one or maybe two moderate to big moves in free agency. I would love to see the Rams land Samari Rolle. The guy can play and in the Titans man coverage he did very well. Also I would like to see the Rams nab Kevin Carter again. I know some of you dont like re-treads but I'll tell you why this will be a good move. We will not succeed with two pass rushing DE's, i.e. (Hargrove,Little). When we had Wistrom and Little it was the perfect combo. Wistrom was the run stuffer and Little was the qb stuffer. Also if Little gets a 1 yr suspension Carter could easily step in and be effective at dt and de. We could draft Spears out of LSU if still available at 19 to fill the other void. If we sign Carter and draft Spears and Little doesnt get suspended, Carter could split his time at de and dt like he did in Tenn. We need a good corner and Rolle is exactly that. Fisher and Butler arent bad but we need one star corner. As for linebacker, I have no idea. I dont really like Trotter, he doesnt succeed everywhere he goes, which scares me. Pierce from Washington and Bell from Pittsburgh are two possibilities but we need a monster in there. Something we havent had since .com Fletcher.

Re: Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

Re: Defensively, the Rams will still be suspect. Front Four first

Originally Posted by rammiser

Also I would like to see the Rams nab Kevin Carter again. We could draft Spears out of LSU if still available at 19 to fill the other void.

Carter won't be coming back. He pretty well burned his bridges. However, I would love to have Spears playing end for us, and I suspect Marmie would love it too. Unfortunately, at #19, we're picking 6 to 9 spots too low for this to happen.

"Before the gates of excellence the high gods have placed sweat; long is the road thereto and rough and steep at first; but when the heights are reached, then there is ease, though grievously hard in the winning." --- Hesiod